A handful of thoughts

The trek to Sandakphu, considered one of the simplest on the Himalayas, was until now, my dream destination. Because I knew that if I cannot initiate myself into the process, I’ll never be able to reach higher and tougher terrains.

Day 1 (Maneybhanjan to Tumling 11 km)
The trek begins at Maneybhanjan, a quaint village 32 km from Darjeeling and 24 km from Ghum.
Sandakphu lies at a distance of 31 km from Maneybhanjan a distance to be traversed through the lush green Singalila National Park. You have to start by 7:00 at the earliest, since the entry fees and pass at the Singalila forest office takes some time. Hiring a porter is a must. During the peak season between September and November, porters charge Rs 250/- a day. However, at other times of the year it can be slightly cheaper. Guides are also available, but they really do not serve any big purpose. The trick is to shift all heavy things from all bags into one rucksack - the one that will be carried by your porter.

The first halt is at Chitrey, 3 km from Maneybhanjan. There is a monastery and a teashop that sells noodle soup, boiled eggs, tea, coffee, and hot chocolate. Bottles of mineral water and rum are also available. But please, DO NOT DRINK ON THE ROAD. Start walking from Chitrey and you get the first glimpse of the ravishing Kanchenjungha. The next village on the route is Lamadur where you can have tea and refill your stock of chewing gum or lozenges. Luch is to be had at Meghma, at the place of Chandra Sir the local school teacher. Meghma lies within Nepal and so does Tumling, the final destination for the day. Instead of going to Tumling, you can also spend the night at Tonglu which is higher up in altitude, but in that case, you miss the excellent food at Shikhar Lodge, Tumling. From Meghma, Tumling is 2.5 km and it shouldn’t take you more than an hour and half at the most to reach there.

The best lodge in Tumling is Shikhar Lodge. It is owned by Nila Sherpa and the food here is the best on this route. That night we had roti, dal, squash curry, bamboo curry, egg curry and papad. However, the tomba - local millet liquor here was not that good. For good tomba I had to wait till Kalipokhri.A five bed room costs Rs 500/-.

Day 2 (Tumling to Kalipokhri)
Our day began with a delicious plate of Tibetan bread and potato curry. We took a few steps and as soon as we turned a bend, a huge Kanchenjungha loomed large before our eyes. From Tumling, the trek is mainly downhill up to Gairibas. on our way we stopped at Jaubari to have a cup of tea. Jaubari is in Nepal and from here we turn to enter the Indian territory. This part of the trek route is rather barren. The vegetation consists mainly of grassy meadows and shrubs and from Jaubari to Gairibas is a steep downhill craggy path. You have to watch your step lest your ankle suffers a twist. From Gairibas to Kalyakatta is a again a 4 km stretch of steep up climb through thickly wooded forests. This route has plenty of shortcuts off the jeep road. Kalyakatta is an interesting place. The tea shop where we had our lunch of boiled eggs and noodle soup, lies in Nepal and the road in front of it is in India. Kalyakatta to Kalipokhri is a smooth trek of 2.5 km through forests. On reaching Kalipokhri a lotus pond greeted us. We put up at the Himchulee Lodge at Rs 60/- per head. For our evening snacks we went to the Pandim Lodge and ordered three plates of momo and Tomba. And this Tomba was a bit old and therefore, great. The guides and porters had all gathered at the adjacent kitchen. It was the last day of Dusshera and all of them began to sing Nepali songs; songs from the hills, at the rhythm of the madal a local percussion instrument. This was by far our best evening on this trip. At 7:00 pm we dispersed and headed for our lodge. Tomorrow’s trek is known to be the toughest part of this route. We have to start early.

Day 3 (Kalipokhri to Sandakphu)
We started off from Kalipokhri at 8:30. The first stop is at Bikeybhanjan some 3 km away. From Bikeybhanjan it is a steep upward climb but not as steep as I had expected it to be. There are plenty of shortcuts here too and we took quite a few of them and reached the top at 12:00 noon. Here we were, at the highest point in West Bengal at 3636 meters but but but….the Kanchenjungha that had showered us with her favors so long, now betrayed us. It had hid itself under a thick veil of clouds. The entire range on a clear weather day reveals a panorama of 26 peaks including the Everest. In the afternoon, we had a glimpse of the Kanchenjungha and the Pandim and the next day morning, before starting for Rimbick. But that was plainly not what we had expected to see. Clearly, I have to come back here. Soon.

Day 4 (Sandakphu to Rimbick - 21 km)
We started off at 6:45 in the morning. The road ahead was a steep downhill trek through the Singalila National Park, upto Srikhola. After Shrikhola (Shiri Khola in local dialect) the path was more or less smooth, up to Rimbick. A thick fog had set in and added up to the enigma that this forest so majestically displays. Winding paths led us downward towards Gurdum (16 km from Sandakphu) - the place where we had an awful lunch. My experimentative self ordered Thenthuk - a Tibetan dish made of flour. A friendly piece of advice - keep away from it. About 2 km from from Gurdum, we got to see the Shrikhola river. Unknown flowers and thick bamboo vegetation accompanied us all the way down. After Shrikhola, the river never leaves your side. With its numerous rapids and white waters, it often demands you to stop walking and aim your camera, or just stand there alone listening to its story while your team members move on ahead. In fact, if you ask me, this is the best trek in this entire trip. I fell quite in love with the road and next time, I am going to break this trek into two days. I shall stay at Gurdum for a night and then move ahead the next day. After you reach shrikhola, the road is more or less smooth but the stress of walking 18 km begins to take a toll on you.